Notes / Commercial Description:
XXIII. So where to next? What's 2011's rich, imperial take on Black Butte Porter? Just for kicks, you dream. Orange zest perhaps? From Spanish Oranges. Seville, to be exact. And Chocolate nibs. Pampered nibs from the artisanal alchemists at Theo. Maybe some chilies? Pasilla Negra only, please. That would be crazy wouldn't it? Welcome to crazy. Get it while you can.

55 IBU

Info from brewery: "475 barrels were produced. 275 were bottled and the remaining 200 were put into kegs."

Reviews by jrallen34:

bottle... dark brown, bordering black, light tan head leaves a finger of light tan head, good retention... awesome nose, tons of orange with a touch of chocolate, chocolate covered oranges... lots of chocolate but a touch light and devoid of taste, not bursting with the flavor I was hoping for... solid, but no xxi

A - Pours nearly pitch black with almost two fingers of light brown head. Head has very good retention buut doesn't leave much in the way of lacing.

S - A surprising amount of citrus and some bourbon. Bourbon smell is a bit too much of the hot alcohol variety, and not as much of the deep vanilla and oak, although those elements are present as well. Also quite a bit of cocoa, roasted malts, and a touch of milk chocolate.

T - Lots of chocolate initially, mostly bittersweet but with a bit of milk chocolate as well, with cocoa, roasted malt, and bourbon notes that contain a big barrel presence, quite oaky. Orange seems to be a subtle component all the way through the taste. Very nice.

M - Medium mouthfeel, not overly heavy. Pretty smooth if not exactly creamy, with a drying effect from the cocoa, roasted malt and oak. Oak taste lingers for awhile.

O - Very enjoyable. Maybe a touch too much oak, but overall nice flavor combination. Look forward to trying this one again down the road.

The beer pours a very dark brown to black color with a brown head. The aroma is full of chocolate and roasted malt. I also get a little bit of orange, but it is fairly faint. There is also some oak notes in the aroma.

The flavor is full of chocolate and roasted malt. I also get some bourbon and oak notes, as well as a little bit of maple and vanilla. There is a little bit of orange in the flavor as well.There is a little bit of hop bitterness in the flavor and the alcohol is very well hidden. This beer is extremely easy to drink.

Medium to thick mouthfeel and low to medium carbonation. A great beer that I assume will only get better with age.

Taste: Cocoa driven roasted malts with accents of coffee, molasses and a light fruitiness. Some nice oak characteristics as well. Finishes with orange (which provides a nice crispness), spicy hops and a lingering, but mild and nuanced, chili pepper taste and burn.

Feel: Full-bodied with low carbonation and a very smooth body. The beer is a little too hot right now (bottled a little over a week ago), and the chilies may be adding to that impression. I like the light chili pepper burn on the finish, versus my experience with Great Divide Chocolate Oak-Aged Yeti where the cayenne was a major distraction for me.

Overall: Just fantastic. A notch below Black Butte XXI at this point, but I had that beer with a year on it. I would not be surprised if I like this one a little better after a year, as this may have more complexity. Cheers to retrying in one year!

22oz waxed and capped bottle at fridge temp poured into a darkness snifter. best after 6/15/12.

pours out pretty much opaque black, the slightest bit of rubiness noticable when held up to the light. a little less than one fingers worth of tight tan colored head. average retention, faded to a ring within a few minutes. only slight lacing from a swirl of the glass and a bit of legs as well.

a nice somewhat light bourbony alcohol first noticable on the nose. the more it warms a nice smokey chile pepper aroma comes out and just a hint of citrus. behind all that is a base sweet toasted, roasted slight chocolately, caramely malt. the aroma does seem a bit subdued compared to when i had this fresh when it was just released.

a very nice taste, all the flavors are in balance with one another. lots of sweet toasted malt, caramel, and a little deep roasted malt, definatly reminiscent of the regular black butte only doubled. a bit of smoke, vanilla, a bit of oaky bourbon. a little chile pepper, with just the slightest bit of spice. more spice comes out as it warms. also a nice dark chocolate flavor.

sticky feel, medium to heavy in body. lightly carbonated.

a very nice, complex beer. i notice something different on each sip, yet all the flavors mingle together so nicely. will be interesting to see what further aging will do.

The flavor is just as divine. There is a lot of vanilla and bourbon, balanced nicely by an oakey woodiness and earthiness, along with some chocolate and just a bit of sweet orange in the background. It's one of those beers that makes you sit back, smile, and appreciate life and beer for all that they have to offer.

The mouthfeel is just a touch too thin. A bit thicker and heavier and this beer skyrockets to one of my favorites of all time. Though, in all honesty, it's really not deterring from my enjoyment of this beer.

Dark brown, ruby edge to it, small tan head, what head there is, leaves a sticky smattering of lace all around the glass. Aroma was nice and mild, coffee, slight amount of bourbon, chocolate was the biggest.

Amazing ability to cover up the alcohol, 25% barrel aged was the perfect ratio, massive chocolate and cocao, even the orange and peppers are noticeable without searching for them. This really tastes just like the XXII that didn't make it into bottling. Love the warmth coming from the peppers instead of the alcohol. Isn't massive viscosity wise, a little thicker than the regular BB, but not up there with Abyss or whatnot.

A little vanilla and oak in the mouthfeel as well. The great things about these is the way you can pick things up without having to 'look' for them in the beer. Complex, but without weird shit for the sake of being weird, every aspect of it seems to meld well with the others. Light notes of coffee and bitterness, like the regular BB.

Solid beer all the way around. I wonder what will happen to the orange and pasilla peppers with age?